Moving On
by PSUbrat
Summary: Wesley realizes he has feelings for Faith, but does she have the same feelings for him? - response to Live Journal BtVSCupid community project


Title: Moving On…  
Author: PSUbrat  
Rating: PG-13  
Disclaimer: These characters belong to Joss Whedon and any other large conglomerate that he sells them to; I'm just borrowing them for a while.  
Spoilers: Everything in the Buffyverse up to and including the episode "You're Welcome" of AtS season 5.  
Feedback:  Yes please, that would be great! (_brat @ psubrat.net_)

Moving On…

Wesley sat at his desk staring absently into the lobby area, the sun shining over his shoulders casting shadows on the books in front of him. He was contemplating a rather rough translation of yet another part of the Shanshu prophecy, a piece that Wolfram and Hart had seen fit to hide from them. Some days, especially since Cordelia's death, he wondered if what they were trying to do was worth it or not. Yes, before she died, she had made them remember who they were and what their purpose was in this world, but it didn't make working for Hell Incorporated any easier. As he let out a sigh, a peal of laughter from the stairs brought him out of his reverie, and when he saw the source of the interruption, his face broke into a wide grin. Faith. 

It had been almost three months now since she had invaded their group here at the law firm. He had been hesitant at first about allowing the once rogue Slayer to work inside the walls of evil, figuring it would be too much of a temptation for her, but she had proven him wrong, time and time again.

He supposed the battle with the First and her time on the Hellmouth in Cleveland had cemented her redemption, not that he'd had any real doubts of what she was capable, on the contrary, he knew that all she needed was a little nurturing and support from those she respected and she would develop into a fine young woman. And she had. To say that he had become enamored of her was an understatement. He found himself drawn to her more and more every day – to her smile and the way it would light up any room she was in, to the fact that no matter how bad things could get, she would always come up fighting. It was that last bit that attracted him most her. In fact, whenever he found himself in a room with both Faith and Fred, his attentions were invariably drawn to the Slayer. She just commanded attention where as Fred tended to blend into the woodwork as much as possible. He wasn't sure when his affections for Fred had started to wane, but if he had to make a guess, it was probably the moment Faith walked through the elevator doors.

* * *

Three months earlier…

The elevator doors opened with a ding and out stepped a lean brunette with full, pouty lips and a confidence that few of her peers could match. She stood in the lobby, hands on her hips, looking pissed off beyond belief. Those that took notice of her as they passed through the area gave her a wide berth; they weren't sure why, but they just had a feeling that she was someone you didn't mess with and live to tell about it. Slowly she looked around, and upon noticing a familiar face from her first go round in Sunnydale sitting at the receptionist's desk, she determinedly walked over, a scowl gracing her features. 

Harmony looked up, immediately sensing the presence of a Slayer. "Faith! What are you doing here?" she asked, quickly standing up and wringing her hands nervously, knowing exactly who and what the raven-haired girl was to her kind. "Don't hurt me, please. I'm on the up and up now. No human blood for me, I swear!"

Faith's eyes narrowed. "Uhm, yeah. Okay? What are you talking about, Harmony? I'm not here to hurt you. Did you have a bad day shopping or something?"

"Oh," Harmony replied, the tension leaving her body for a second, but then returning as her guard went back up. "Then why are you here?"

"I heard a little rumor and had to come check it out for myself. And speaking of checking things out for myself, what are you doing here? Do you work here or something?"

"Yeah, I'm Angel's secretary. I was working in the typing pool when Wes picked me out."

"You were working here before Angel took over? So that means that you're evil?"

"I'm only technically still evil! Hello, vampire here! That's right, you weren't there, you were all coma girl and stuff. I got vamped during graduation…after the Mayor did the whole big snake thing. Big bummer, huh?"

"Right," Faith responded, frowning at Harmony. Harmony as a vampire, what was the world coming to?

"Anyway, what sort of rumor did you hear?" Harmony asked, clapping her hands together and fairly bouncing with delight, trying desperately to change the subject. "Is it juicy? Share!"

"First," Faith started, her annoyance gaining momentum, "we're not going to do any girly bonding…ever. Second, I want to see Spike. Now."

Harmony's glee washed away with the mention of Spike. She backed up, putting more space between herself and the Slayer. They were all under strict orders to not reveal Spike's existence to anyone who might let Buffy know he was alive. It was bad enough that Andrew knew, but he had sworn on his life he would never tell. "I don't know what you're talking about," she replied nervously. "Didn't he die closing the Hellmouth in Sunnydale?"

Faith growled and slammed her fist down on the counter. Harmony winced in response. "Now why don't I believe you?" As if to prove her distrust of Harmony's words, she stepped back from the counter and put her hands on her hips once again. After taking one last look around and not finding the object of her interest, she took a deep breath and bellowed, "William the Bloody get your ass out here now!"

Everyone in the immediate vicinity stopped in their tracks and stared at the young woman causing the commotion.

"Really, Faith," Harmony begged. "He's not here."

"Right and I'm Little Miss Muffet," Faith replied curtly. She walked over to the bottom of the stairs and yelled Spike's name again. Still the supposed dead vampire didn't appear. 

* * *

Wesley sat in the overstuffed chair in front of Angel's desk, listening to the briefing that Gunn was giving them on their latest big bad client and taking notes. It must be full moon, he thought, since their evil clients seemed to be coming out of the woodwork suddenly. Either that or they all had a meeting and decided to make Angel's life hell at the same time, and in turn make his and the others' lives hell as well. In fact, work had been so hectic lately that none of them really had time for a social life, and the stress was starting to become noticeable. He supposed it could be worse though, like apocalyptically worse. Perhaps a few evil clients and a lack of social life weren't so bad after all.

While he had been deep in thought, he hadn't noticed that Gunn had gone silent and was now frowning.

"What's all that racket?" Angel demanded, straining to look out his office windows into the lobby area.

"Dunno, was just wondering that myself," Gunn replied, his hands shoved deep into his latest pinstriped suit pockets as he moved towards the windows to assess the commotion.

Wesley stood and walked over next to Gunn, figuring he'd see some disgruntled employee going off on Harmony because she wouldn't let them in to see Angel. That happened from time to time. Instead, he saw a familiar face and he felt his stomach clench in response.

"Looks like we've got a visitor," Gunn stated smiling.

"A visitor?" Angel groaned. "Who now?"

Wes turned around and looked straight at his boss, eyebrows raised. "Faith."

* * *

"Okay, now I'm getting pissed. Get on your little phone and tell Angel I'm here…"

"He knows," Angel stated as he walked out of his office, trailed closely by Wes and Gunn. "Kind of hard not to with all the noise you're making."

"Angel," Faith said with a sweet smile. "How the hell are you? Chuck, Wes. Good to see you both again," she said with a nod as she crossed her arms and shifted all of her weight onto her left foot.

"Hey Faith," Gunn replied with a curt nod.

"Good to see you again, Faith. You're looking well," Wesley said with a smile. He meant what he said, whatever she had been doing was certainly agreeing with her.

"Thanks. Been keeping myself busy on the Cleveland Hellmouth, fighting the big bads and keeping baby Slayers in line." Looking back at Angel, she continued to address him. "You don't call. You don't write. What's a girl to think?"

"That I've been busy fighting evil," Angel replied stoically.

"Really? From what I've been hearin', evil's controlling you and not the other way around."

"Oh, we're not evil," Harmony assured her, shaking her head and smiling brightly. "Boss here fired all the really evil people. Well, except the ones he killed himself."

Faith returned her attention back to Angel. "Is that so? So, what, you're all just sorta evil now?"

Wes chuckled to himself. He had almost forgotten how straight forward she could be when the occasion presented itself.

Angel stepped forward and stood in front of the dark haired Slayer, folding his arms over his chest as well. "Faith, not that it isn't good to see you again, but why are you here?"

"Way to get right down to business, handsome. Knew I liked you for a reason. I'm here for Spike."

"Spike?" Angel asked incredulously. "Isn't he…?"

"Dead, yeah, supposed to be anyway, but you see, this little birdie whispered in my ear that I could find him here, alive and kicking." After pausing for a few moments and getting no reaction on Angel's part, she demanded, "Where is he?"

"Faith, really, I have no idea what you're talking…" Angel's denial was cut short when the elevator doors opened and Spike stepped out.

Faith shot Angel a 'we'll talk later' look and then turned towards the blond vampire. "Spike, good to see you," she cracked with a smile.

Spike froze at the sound of her voice and then looked up for the first time since stepping off the elevator. His eyes went wide with surprise. "Faith, how are you?"

"I'm just fine," she responded, sauntering over to Spike with a smile on her lips. When she got close enough, she cocked back her arm and punched him in the face.

"Bloody hell!" he yelped, holding his nose. "What the hell was that for?"

"That," she stated calmly, "was for B."

Angel, with a hint of panic creeping into his voice, asked, "Buffy knows that he's alive?"

"No," Faith replied with a shake of her head and an edge to her voice. "I'm the only one that knows, well, other than the birdie who told me, but that's besides the point."

"How?" Angel wondered aloud. "We've been so careful."

"Yeah, well, not careful enough," Faith growled. "Like I said, I have my sources."

"Andrew," Wes whispered to Gunn.

"I knew I should have had his memory sucked out," Gunn growled back.

"It doesn't matter how I know. Just understand this: I'm not going to keep quiet about it."

"Faith," Spike stated gruffly, "Buffy can't ever know."

"Why, because Angel said so?" Her eyes burned into Angel, and it took all of her strength to keep herself from tearing him apart.

"No, it's not that…" Angel started. "It's not up to me."

"Damn right, it's not up to you," she snapped. "Look, I don't know what game you're all playing here, and I don't care, but I suggest that you," she said poking Spike in the chest, "get that ass of yours on a plane and get to Italy before the day's out."

"No," Angel said, anger tainting the tone of his voice. "He can't."

"Give me one good reason why not," Faith demanded, fury glinting in her eyes.

"Because my sacrifice would mean nothing," Spike replied somberly.

"Have to say, Blondie, that's the stupidest thing I've ever heard. Now, why are you still here?"

"I-I can't," Spike stuttered, tears forming in his sapphire eyes.

"Look, B hasn't been the same since you, uh…died. She's a mess, worse than I've ever seen her. She needs you."

"No she doesn't," Angel said, clenching his fists.

"So you're an expert on what Buffy needs?" Faith snarled, spinning around to face Angel. "How would you know anything about Buffy? You only see her once every couple of years. You swoop in, whisper a few terms of endearment, kiss her and then disappear back into the night. And that whole 'our love is so eternal' thing? Get over it. She knows how you felt about Queen C."

"That is none of your business, Faith. And you don't know Buffy either."

"That's where you're wrong, Angel. She and I went through a lot after I left you guys. We put our differences aside and fought together to defeat the First, but I guess you've forgotten that part, huh? After that we became friends and I saw what Spike's death did to her, what it's made her into." She began pacing, her tone growing harder and angrier. "It's not pretty, and from what I understand, it's worse than when Willow brought her back. So imagine my surprise when I hear that Spike's alive and out here with you. Why would you want to hurt her like this, especially since you say you love her?" 

"But, her cookie dough," Angel muttered under his breath.

"Yeah, whatever," Faith said with a roll of her eyes. "B's not great with the analogies, but since we're going with the cookie dough thing, Spike here baked her dough before he closed the Hellmouth."

"I what now?" Spike asked perplexed.

"When Buffy told you she loved you, she meant it you moron, and I can't believe you're still here."

"Well, you see, here's the thing, and even if you're right about Buffy being in love with me, there's still the whole sunlight allergy issue. It's not like I can just hop a plane and be done with it, now can I, pet?"

Faith looked over at Angel who had gone into complete brood mode. "I'm sure a place like this has connections, isn't that right, Angel?"

When Angel didn't respond, Wesley stepped forward. "We do. We'll make the proper arrangements immediately." He couldn't believe how quickly he had offered to help. Her physical presence and confidence had just overwhelmed him to the point that he wanted to please her. She certainly wasn't the same girl that had tortured him or the one that he had broken out of prison just a little over a year ago. No, she was so much more.

"Good, 'cause I'd hate to have to make that phone call to B. Know what I'm saying?"

"That won't be necessary," Wes assured her. "Spike will be in Italy by this time tomorrow." Suddenly he realized that he was fixating on her bottom lip and fantasizing what it would be like to take it between his teeth and suck on it gently.

Faith nodded her response and then turned back to Spike. "Well, Blondie, I think you better go pack your things. Oh, and I suggest that when you get there, you do a lot of groveling."

Spike's face lit up and his eyes twinkled with joy. "You wouldn't lie to a bloke when he's already down, now would you?"

"No, I'm telling it straight up. Now get packing before I have to stake you and make this whole thing moot."

"Right then," Spike said as he fairly skipped back to the elevator. "I'm off. Chuck, Wes…good times. Angel can't say I'll miss you. Oh, and someone please tell Fred thanks for everything?"

"Tell her yourself," Fred stated as she walked down the steps. She had heard everything from where she had stood at the landing. "Behave yourself and drop us a post card or a phone call every now and then to let us know how you're making out. I uh, I mean to let us know how you're doing." She blushed deeply and gave Spike a hug.

"Thanks, luv, I will." Stepping back from the hug, he looked from face to face. "Well, it's not been grand…"

"Wait," Angel started, his face grave. "You can't go. What about the Shanshu and the universe being in chaos because there's two of us?"

Wes put a hand on Angel's shoulder. "It's alright, Angel. Let him go. If something comes up, we'll know where he is and get in touch with him." It really was that simple. There was no real need for Spike to be at Wolfram and Hart any longer, especially since all he seemed to do was annoy Angel. There were bigger things to worry about for now.

"Right then. I'm off." With that said, Spike left them and went to join Buffy in Europe.

While Wes and Gunn tried to console Angel, Faith walked around the lobby, taking in the details. "So," she began, "where's my office?"

"Pardon?" Wesley asked frowning. Had he heard her right? Was she going to stay?

"My office. You know, a place for me to hang, unless one of you all wants to share."

"You don't work here…" Harmony huffed, but trailed off as Faith walked towards Angel's office, her boot heels clicking loudly on the floor.

"I do now."

* * *

Present...

When their eyes met, Wes smiled shyly and nodded. Faith nodded back as she bounded down the last couple of steps, and began making her way towards his office. His heart skipped a couple of beats as he drank in the beauty of the woman she had become. Before she could reach the doorway, however, Harmony informed her that she had a call from someone named Robin Wood. He saw Faith pale at the mention of her former lover's name, and his heart went out to her. More than anything, he wanted to wrap his arms around her and to tell her to ignore the phone call. He wanted to protect her, to make things right, but he knew he couldn't. Not yet. Maybe not ever. Leaning back in his chair, he watched as she walked over to Harmony's desk to take the call.

In the time that Faith had been here, he had only asked once about what had happened in Cleveland, because that once was all it took for her to crawl back into herself and close off from the rest of them. Since then, he had made sure she knew that they didn't care what had happened in her past, as long as she was okay. As a result, he and Faith had grown quite close, to the point that everyone in the building was beginning to talk about them.

Wes was quite aware of what was being said, but for his part he tried to ignore the ramblings and innuendos. He was sure that Faith would never be interested in someone such as himself, especially since he had been her Watcher once, and a poor one at that. Now he just hoped that they could continue to be friends.

With a sigh, he realized he was probably fooling himself. Faith didn't have friends; even now after her rehabilitation, she kept everyone at arm's length, except for Robin. She had let him in and as a result, she had been burned somehow. Something had happened between them that had made her distant and sad. There were rumors that she had caught him cheating on her with another Slayer, but they were just that, rumors and he didn't want to push. All he could do was hope that someday she would talk to him about it.

Why did he always find himself attracted to the most unattainable women? It had started with Cordelia all those years ago and now here he was with Faith – and to top it all off, he was now attracted to, and possibly in love with, a woman that had beaten and tortured him, if that wasn't masochism he wasn't sure what was.

He was about to chide himself for his foolishness when she appeared in his doorway, her bottom lip trembling and her arms wrapped around herself. She looked beaten. Resigned.

"Faith, what is it?" he asked, getting up and quickly walking towards her. She still hadn't spoken when he reached her, so he quietly guided her to the couch and then shut the door. When she still hadn't responded to his first question or to his hand on her shoulder, he squatted down in front of her, concern etched on his face. "Faith," he said gently, trying to look in her eyes. "Are you alright?"

Slowly she looked up at him, tears pooling and threatening to spill over any second. "Is there something wrong with me, Wes? I mean I'm attractive, right?"

Wes cocked his head to the side and frowned. "Faith, I'm not sure what's going on, but…"

"I'm a good person now, right? Someone could love me; I mean really love me, not just for the sex, right? Even though that's always great…"

He stood up and folded his arms across his chest. "Want to tell me what this all about? Does it have something to do with the phone call from Robin?"

At the mention of the man's name, she paled again briefly, and then anger bubbled to the surface. "He's getting married to one of his Slayers. The one I caught him with." She paused and he saw the struggle on her face to keep her composure. "They're getting married, Wes. Just like that."

Wes sat down next to her on the couch. So the rumors had been true. Bastard. "If it makes you feel any better, he'll have to step down as Watcher. I highly doubt that Giles will allow…"

"No," she replied, shaking her head. "The Council needs every Watcher they have right now. They're going to overlook the relationship, like they did with him and me. Nothing is standing in their way. He said he called because he didn't want me to hear it from someone else, but I think he just wanted to rub it in." She kept hugging herself and staring off into space.

Besides having the gut response that he wanted to track down this man and kill him for hurting her so, the feeling he'd had earlier returned. He wanted nothing more than to hold her close and to assure her that everything would be all right. Instead, he opted to tell her he was sorry and to impart a little of his own experience in this department. "I know it hurts, Faith, to have the one you love choose to love someone else. It's an awful feeling, and contrary to popular belief, it does not get better – not when you love them with your entire being. I've been there, a few times myself you know. The only thing you can do is be happy with the person you are and understand that your time will come."

"That's the thing, Wes, I thought I loved him, but I don't, not like that. Not anymore. Not since…" She trailed off, biting her bottom lip and looking at him intently as she moved closer to his side of the couch.

"They why are you so upset?" he asked, interrupting her explanation and not noticing the look the she was giving him. He was so wrapped up in worrying about how she felt; that he didn't even realize that she had moved closer to him.

"I'm upset because everything I touch turns bad. Everything. Every relationship I've ever had ended in disaster, even my friendships. Look at what happened with me and Buffy…"

"You were a different person then, Faith. You've grown up a lot since we first met. Buffy knows that too."

She nodded her head, acknowledging that he was right. She and Buffy had buried the proverbial hatchet before their battle with the First and had since become friends. Not best friends, but she knew she could rely on Buffy when the chips were down. "I know, but I'm scared that I'm never going to be able to have something good and not screw it up. Does that make sense?"

Wes smiled, understanding exactly what she was saying. Taking her hands between his and looking at her earnestly, he tried to reassure her that she was indeed worthy of love. "Faith, you are an extraordinary woman with many amazing qualities. And someday, someone who understands you will come along and you'll finally see that things don't always have to be so hard." His eyes and face betrayed his feelings and when she looked up at him, he quickly averted his gaze.

"I think that someone is already here," she said quietly, her eyes heavy lidded as she leaned over to kiss him.

Despite his initial shock at her forwardness, his eyes slipped closed as he returned the kiss, taking note of how soft and warm her lips felt against his. His heart raced in his throat as the realization struck him that he was finally kissing the woman that he loved.

"Wes," she pleaded when he pulled away, his eyes huge, and terror written all over his face.

Standing up quickly, he walked over to his desk, his back to her. He needed to put a stop to this before one of them got hurt. "Faith, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have…"

"Wes, stop being the perfect gentleman," she growled, standing up and closing the distance between them. "I'm the one that initiated it."

"Yes, but, you're in pain and I won't take advantage…"

"Who says that you're taking advantage?" she asked, reaching out and touching his arm, her tone trying to convey her feelings. "I wanted to kiss you. I have for a while now. Actually I want a lot more than that, but that's up to you, big guy."

He spun around and looked at her, his eyes searching her face for the sincerity he heard in her voice. Slowly he reached up and cupped her cheek in his hand. "Faith, please, this isn't how…"

"Who cares about the how," she declared as she placed her hand on top of his. "It doesn't matter how it happens, just as long as it happens."

"You do understand that I want much more than just sex with you, don't you?" he asked softly, wanting her to understand that she meant more to him than some fling.

She nodded as she chewed on her bottom lip. "I know, and for the first time in my life I want that too." She paused when he began to protest and cut off his words by placing her finger to his lips. "Wes, you're the first person that's accepted me for who I am and not who they wanted me to be. You know what I'm about and it doesn't scare you or intimidate you. Don't you see that you've made me realize that I don't have to be a bad ass to get attention? I can just be me."

"Faith, ever since you came here, all I've wanted for you was the best. I can't see how I'd be…"

"Wesley, just shut up and kiss me."

Listening to his heart, he took her into his arms, doing what she had demanded by crushing his lips to hers in a passionate kiss. As the kiss intensified, he felt his knees go weak and his heart pound in his chest. He had fantasized about this moment for so long and now it was finally here, better than he ever thought possible.

Before things could go further, the door burst open and Harmony bounded in. "Hey, Wes you have…Wow," she giggled. "Sorry. I'll just, you know, go back out to my desk and uh, hold your calls."

Wes and Faith blushed at being caught in the lip lock, but neither made a move to break apart. "Thank you, Harmony," Wes stated while looking deeply into Faith's eyes. "That'll be all."

"Sure, thing," Harmony replied, backing out the door. "Just one thing before I go."

They both looked at the blonde assistant with a frown.

"It's about time! I'm gonna have to tell Gunn he won the pool."

"There was a pool?" Wes asked incredulously.

"Well, duh, yeah. I had you guys down for Memorial Day, but Gunn was the closest with Easter."

"Good old, Chuck," Faith said, shaking her head. "Guess I should have known something was up when he was telling me to make a move on you."

"Hey! That's cheating!" Harmony yelled. "I'm gonna go give him a piece of my mind."

"Yes, Harmony," Wes stated in a sultry voice. "Why don't you go do that? And don't forget to hold my calls."

"Right, boss," the blonde vampire squealed as she left the room, closing the door behind her.

"Now," Wes said, pulling Faith close to him again. "Where were we?"

The End 


End file.
